In the Budget, the finance minister has chosen to walk a cautious path while the focus on growth is maintained. Markets look forward to the Budget as the direction of policy is very crucial apart from the proposals for various sectors. Ranjeet S Mudholkar writes.

In this year's budget, Pranab Mukherjee has essentially tried to consolidate the gains made as a result of the initiatives he had launched during the previous two budgets. Thus, in agriculture, there is no new initiative except increasing the target for agricultural credit to Rs 5,75,000 crore during 2012-13. This represents an increase of over Rs 1,00,000 crore from last year.

Between electoral analysis and the budget as a financial statement, the UPA needs a social budget of its eight-year tenure. As an experiment, the UPA was a tremendous collection of possibilities. Its social imagination was extraordinary, Shiv Vishvanathan writes.

The budget 2012-13 was prepared against the backdrop of high interest rates, inflation above the comfort zone of policy makers, slowing economy and impending pressure of elections in 2014. Above all, the economy faced a rising fiscal deficit.

The Union Budget came at a time of slowing manufacturing growth, and a widening fiscal deficit, caused mostly by high oil prices. Private sector investment spending has almost halted. Even the Economic Survey says that it is imperative to quickly revive investment sentiment, and give a big impetus to industrial production.